Licensing materials from the Academy Film Archive

In some circumstances, the Archive may be able to make collection materials available for licensing or reuse in new projects. Procedures for requesting and licensing materials are outlined below; the Archive reserves the right to refuse to duplicate any collection material due to preservation concerns, copyright restrictions, or other considerations. Any further questions related to access and licensing of Archive materials should be directed to our administrative offices at (310) 247-3016. The Archive's licensing rate sheet is available upon request.

Duplication requests

Materials of interest must be consulted onsite by the researcher before duplicates will be made for review or editing. The standard access fee of $125 per item copied is payable in advance and will apply to all requests for videotape footage provided prior to licensing. Access fees apply whether or not material is licensed for use in production and are not refundable. Invoices for fees will be provided upon request. Checks for access fees should be made out to the Academy Foundation; sorry, no credit cards. Tape copies remain the property of the Academy Film Archive and must be returned after use.

In the case of film originals for which no video master exists, the client may choose to have the entire reel(s) of film transferred to video at a lab of the Archive's choosing. The standard access fee of $125 per item will not apply to materials transferred at the client's expense. The client is responsible for getting his/her own quotes for scheduling and costs from the lab. Materials will be released from the Archive directly to/from the designated lab, not the requestor. Telecine masters will remain the property of the Archive; however, the client may request that additional video copies be made for their use at the same time. All lab charges will be billed directly to the client; the Archive will not reimburse those costs in the event that the client elects not to license the footage.

For some copyrighted materials, the Archive holds the best or only surviving copy. These materials will not be duplicated or released for transfer without written permission from the current rights holder. It is the client's responsibility to verify the current copyright holder and secure permission prior to making a duplication request.

Licensing requests

Requests for broadcast-quality dubs of footage to be licensed for production must be made in writing to:

Michael Pogorzelski, Director
Academy Film Archive
1313 N. Vine Street
Los Angeles , CA 90028
Fax: (310) 247-3032

If mailed, envelopes should be clearly marked "Licensing request."

To ensure accurate and timely fulfillment of all requests, clients should carefully and completely identify the material to be duplicated, providing collection ID number(s), reel/tape number, timecode in/out points, and brief shot descriptions wherever applicable.

Clients should specify the intended use of the footage, with working titles for film or television projects, rights being requested, distribution plans, and expected date of completion or release. Clients should also provide company or institutional affiliation, complete address, phone, email, and fax contact information with each request.

All requests should specify a deadline by which video master material is required. Turnaround time for licensing and duplication requests will be approximately 3-5 weeks from receipt of request. Rush services are not available.

Video masters will be provided on BetaSP cassette in NTSC format, unless another tape or image format is specified. Please note that due to the unpredictable aging process of film, the Archive cannot guarantee image quality; however, we will provide the best image quality possible for each piece of film or segment of video.